Stage 2

For the stage of the Cambrian, see Cambrian Stage 2.

Stage 2 was a UK television anthology series produced by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Thirteen episodes aired on BBC2 under Stage 2 billing from 1971–73. They were all productions of classic plays shown previously or subsequently on BBC1 under Play of the Month. Only Mrs. Warren's Profession is currently available on DVD.

Stage 2
Genre	Drama, Anthology, television plays
Written by	Various
Directed by	Various
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	13 (3 missing)
Production
Producer	Cedric Messina
Running time	85-120 minutes
Production company	BBC
Original release
Network	BBC 2
Release	7 July 1971 (1971-07-07) – 25 September 1973 (1973-09-25)

Productions

Sourced according to the BBC Genome archive of Radio Times magazines, with archival status from TV Brain.

Original UK transmission date	Title	Author(s)	Producer	Director	Performers (non-exhaustive)	Notes	Archive status
Season One
7 July 1971	Trelawny of the 'Wells'	Arthur W. Pinero	Cedric Messina	Herbert Wise	John Alderton, Lally Bowers, Graham Crowden, Roland Culver, Rachel Kempson, Ian Ogilvy, Moira Redmond, Elizabeth Seal, Elaine Taylor, Graham Crowden, Anthony Ainley, John Cater, John Dearth, Godfrey James, Lila Kaye, Stephanie Turner, Henry Woolf	Adapted from the play. Repeated on BBC1 13 Aug 1972 under Play of the Month.	Survives
14 July 1971	Candida	Bernard Shaw	Cedric Messina	Alan Cooke	Geraldine McEwan, George Baker, Timothy Dalton, Jeremy Bulloch, Clive Revill, Priscilla Morgan	Adapted from the play. First shown on BBC1 under Play of the Month.	Missing
21 July 1971	The Playboy of the Western World	J.M. Synge	Cedric Messina	Alan Gibson	John Hurt, Sinéad Cusack, Pauline Delany, Joe Lynch, Kevin Flood, James Caffrey, Gerard Murphy	Adapted from the play. Repeated on BBC1 11 June 1972 under Play of the Month.	Survives
28 July 1971	Ross	Terence Rattigan, adapted for television by William Emms	Gerald Savory	Cedric Messina	Ian McKellen, Charles Gray, Barrie Ingham, John Bennett, Martin Jarvis, Edward Fox, Brian Rawlinson, Michael Robbins, David Spenser, Hugh Walters, Simon Lack, Robert Luckham, Victor Pemberton, David Griffin, Richard Hampton	Adapted from the play. First shown on BBC1 under Play of the Month.	Missing
4 August 1971	She Stoops to Conquer	Oliver Goldsmith	Cedric Messina	Michael Elliott	Tom Courtenay, Thora Hird, Juliet Mills, Ralph Richardson, Elaine Taylor, Terry Bale, Esmond Knight, Geoffrey Bateman	Adapted from the play. Repeated on BBC1 23 July 1972 under Play of the Month.	Survives
11 August 1971	Uncle Vanya	Anton Chekhov, translated by Elisaveta Fen	Cedric Messina	Christopher Morahan	Freddie Jones, Anthony Hopkins, Ann Bell, Roland Culver, John Baskcomb, Richard Beale, Stacey Tendeter	Adapted from the play. First shown on BBC1 under Play of the Month.	Survives
Season Two
26 September 1972	Peer Gynt	Henrik Ibsen, English version by Norman Ginsbury	Cedric Messina	Alan Cooke	Colin Blakely, Wendy Hiller, Francesca Annis, Ray Barrett, Aubrey Morris, Lois Baxter, Dudley Foster, John Franklyn-Robbins, Terence Bayler, Helen Blatch, Claire Davenport, Elroy Josephs, Andrew Lane, Mark McManus	Adapted from the play. Repeated on BBC1 22 August 1973 under Play of the Month.	Survives
3 October 1972	Mrs Warren's Profession	Bernard Shaw	Cedric Messina	Herbert Wise	Coral Browne, Penelope Wilton, James Grout, Derek Godfrey, Robert Powell, Richard Pearson	Adapted from the play. Repeated on BBC1 21 April 1974 under Play of the Month.	Survives
10 October 1972	The Duchess of Malfi	John Webster	Cedric Messina	James MacTaggart	Eileen Atkins, Michael Bryant, Charles Kay, T. P. McKenna, Gary Bond, Tim Curry, Jerome Willis, Michael Godfrey, Robert James, Roy Evans, Michael Lynch, Jack Galloway, Dallas Cavell, Peter Spraggon, Talfryn Thomas, Nick Brimble	Adapted from the play. Repeated on BBC1 18 July 1973 under Play of the Month.	Survives
17 October 1972	Rasputin	Ronald Eyre	Cedric Messina	Alan Cooke	Robert Stephens, Peter Barkworth, Isabel Dean, Lally Bowers, T. P. McKenna, Robert Eddison, Andrew Robertson, Reg Lye, Leonard Trolley, Harry Waters, Derrick Gilbert, John Savident, James Bree	Adapted from the play. First shown on BBC1 under Play of the Month.	Survives
24 October 1972	The Cherry Orchard	Anton Chekhov, translated by Elisaveta Fen	Gerald Savory	Cedric Messina	Jenny Agutter, Ray Brooks, Laurence Carter, Christopher Gable, Charles Gray, Celia Johnson, Cyril Shaps, David Spenser, Mary Wimbush, Edward Woodward	Adapted from the play. First shown on BBC1 under Play of the Month.	16mm b&w print
31 October 1972	Stephen D	James Joyce, adapted by Hugh Leonard	Cedric Messina	Donald McWhinnie	Donal McCann, David Kelly, Aidan Murphy, Brendan Price, Brenda Fricker	Adapted from Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Stephen Hero. First shown on BBC1 under Play of the Month.	Survives
Season Three
25 September 1973	The Shadow of a Gunman	Sean O'Casey	Cedric Messina	Alvin Rakoff	Hilary Minster, Mark Moss, Phyllis McMahon, Isolde Cazelet, Michael O'Donoughue, Keith Steven	Adapted from the play. Repeated on BBC1 20 April 1975 under Play of the Month.	Missing

See also

Other BBC drama anthology series include

• Play of the Month
• Theatre 625
• Second City Firsts
• BBC2 Playhouse
• Screen Two
• Thirty-Minute Theatre

External links

• Stage 2 at IMDb